A Tale of Two Bloodlines
by theFallingIcarus
Summary: The Sheperds' tactician Robin and the Princess of Ylisse, Lissa, and their misadventures. Contains Male Robin x Lissa.


"Happy birthday Chrom!"

The cheers rang throughout the kingdom - not in the least at the Lord's very dinner table.

The Plegian war had ended just in time for Chrom's birthing day, and the Mad King Gangrel was dead. There was peace in Ylisse, and the relief for the end of the war was tangible. No man had been happier than Chrom, and personally, thought Robin, the man deserved it. He had seen how hard Emmeryn's death had affected Chrom, and Robin was determined that the Exalt of Ylisse enjoy himself. The war was over, it was the Exalt's birthday, and Sumia had baked pies. What more cause was there for them to celebrate?

"Teach gives Chrom his congratulations!" Shouted Vaike over the din of the table, and he reached around behind him for his axe. Predictably, it wasn't there. "Well, uh... Can the Vaike ask ya for a birthday favour?" He wheedled, and Chrom eyed him strangely. "I suppose so, yes... No rematch requests, though!" Chrom said hastily, seeing Vaike's face light up. The fighter drooped, and pulled a face. "Dang it."

Robin laughed as he saw Sully whack her husband's shoulder. "Eh, shut up, idiot." Vaike adopted a wounded expression, nursing his arm and muttering under his breath, "I could beat him in a fight any day, the Vaike knows it!"

Chrom could be seen chuckling as well, and whispered something to Sumia. Sumia burst out laughing, and the two were held firmly in mirth as they looked upon the comedy that was Sully and Vaike. Meanwhile, Virion was making it known to Frederick, Stahl and Olivia at the end of the table that he was the truly the man who put 'arch' in 'archer' by giving them an example. "Why," the archer proclaimed, "Was it not just the other day that I gallantly saved that village from destruction, single-handedly, no less? I think that I deserve the right to be The Archer. Nay, The Archerest of Archers is a title fitting my noble personage!"

Stahl grinned. "Sure, Virion. I'm sure the entire army wasn't backing you up that day." Virion said airily, "But of course! 'Twas me, I am sure of it! Well, the army may have done this or that... But at the end of the day, it remains that I did most! Surely, I deserve-" Frederick cut in, raising an eyebrow. "Excuse me for disrupting your fantasy, Virion, but was it not Olivia that had to aid you when the Risen surrounded you?"

Olivia blushed while Virion blustered. "I-I assure you, Frederick, that was not the case! Well, er, not completely. I was completely in control, was I not, Olivia?" Olivia cringed at her husband making such a huge fuss, but responded shyly, "I... Think I agree with Frederick. You kinda needed help." Stahl looked at Virion, and saw the latter's flustered expression before chortling. "Ahahaha! We got you there, Virion!"

Robin's smile grew wider, and he turned his head away from a scene of happiness yet again. This time, it was the rest of the Sheperds, all together in one group. Gregor was in the centre of it, his cheerful and welcoming personality bringing the group much amusement. He seemed to be telling them the punchline of a joke that Robin had not heard fully. "Gregor is then saying to man, 'What about man's family? Does he not care for them?' Man then replying, 'My family are all Plegians!'" This seemed to strike the group as hilarious, and they erupted into uproarious laughter.

All in all, the mood was one of festivity, and all in the room rejoiced at the Exalt's birthday and the end of the Plegian war. No one should have been unhappy or not at ease, thought Robin, and rightly so.

Then, in that case, where on earth was Lissa? Even as Robin observed the Exalt's dining hall from where he sat away from the others, he could not spy Chrom's little sibling anywhere. Odd, he thought, and stood up. Surely as Chrom's sister was somewhere here, celebrating with her brother? Perhaps he had just missed her as he sat there, and just to be sure, Robin thoroughly scanned the room once more. Nope, he was right. Lissa was definitely not present at her brother's party.

Robin frowned. Had she not even come in the first place? He sincerely could not recall Lissa even being there at the start of the dinner, nor throughout. Even weirder, Lissa was normally the soul of the party, livening up proceedings everywhere with a grin. And yet, she was not there now. This is getting stranger and stranger, Robin mused, and decided that maybe she was outside.

As the Sheperds' tactician, Robin regarded it as his duty to make sure every member of the Sheperds were in the best of condition and ready for anything. So an unnatural absence was definitely something for him to be concerned about. What if the war cleric had been taken ill, and no one had checked up on her? He couldn't help but worry, and, unnoticed, strode quickly to the door of the room.

Getting out of the hot, stifling air of the rowdy dining hall came as a relief to Robin, and the cool night breeze stirred the dark hair on his head. Confused as to his whereabouts, he looked around for a second, before realising that in his absent-mindedness he had taken the wrong door out. Now, Robin stood on the balcony of the dining hall.

Well, since he was here, Robin might as well enjoy the view before looking for Lissa. Thinking that, Robin made his way towards the balustrade at the edge of the balcony when he heard something. Quiet, gentle sobbing. Whirling around and looking for the source, Robin saw nothing.

Then he caught a shape, out of the corner of his eye. A darker area, blending into shadows of the balcony. Not quite distinct, being able to fade away upon a quick glance, but as Robin focused his gaze on the shape, he could make out a person. ...Lissa?

It seemed it was her who had been crying, and Robin quickly went over to her. Yes, it had been Chrom's younger sister indeed. Unsure about what to say, Robin held up a hand, then faltered. "Uh... Lissa?" She jumped, clearly not having noticed him approach. "Are you alright?"

"R-robin!" She tried hastily to wipe her tears away and pretend that nothing had happened, but Robin took her arm gently. "It's okay," he told her softly, "I won't tell anyone. It's okay." She sniffed, and nodded.

She said nothing for a while, and neither did Robin. Eventually, he sat down next to her, and Lissa didn't move away. "...Are you okay now?" Robin asked, hoping that she was not sad anymore. "Yeah. I'm fine," she responded, biting her lower lip, and rubbed her eyes again. "Sorry about that, Robin."

He shrugged. "You have nothing to apologise for. But, if I may say something, Lissa?" She nodded, and Robin grimaced. "I'm sorry to be chastising you, but you really shouldn't be sad on such an important day. If it's alright for me to know, why were you crying?" Robin shifted uncomfortably. "Chrom would not like to see his younger sister this upset on his birthday. In fact, he'd drop everything and run here if he knew you were upset."

"Am I his younger sister?"

Such a response stunned Robin momentarily, and after a second of shock, Robin furrowed his brow in concern. "W-whatever do you mean by that? Of course you're his sister! You're the blood of the Exalt!"

"That's not what I meant, Robin." Unnaturally despondent, Lissa looked away. Robin could see the crack in the door where light shone through, spilling a golden line across the floor. It didn't touch either of them. "It's just... Sometimes I wonder. You've never heard anyone talk about it, of course, but... I wasn't born with the brand of the Exalt." Robin's eyes grew big, and he looked at her. "What, are you serious?"

Her face was set in a strange expression between misery and indifference. "As can be. I... Never had it. Even though we all waited, it never surfaced. You can see Chrom, he has the Brand on his shoulder, a-and Emmeryn had hers on her forehead. So where is mine?" She slumped forward in a position most unbecoming for a princess. "Everyone with the blood of the Exalt has had their Brand surface, no matter how long it took - everyone. Except me." Lissa stared at the ground. "So what does that say about me?"

Robin put a hand on her back. He wasn't quite sure to respond, but so he said nothing. "Robin, what do you think?" She turned to him, and Robin was lost for words. "Uh... What do I think about what?" He stalled, and Lissa pouted. "What else am I talking about? You know, the Brand! Or my lack of it..."

Scratching his head thoughtfully, it took Robin a while to respond. "...I think it doesn't matter," he said eventually. Lissa looked startled. "What? It doesn't matter?"

"The Brand is just a birthmark, the way I see it." Robin tipped his head back to look at the stars. "Just a birthmark. You are definitely one of the blood of the Exalt. I can tell. Even though I never saw your sister all too much, you... You look exactly like her. A bit more exuberant, a bit more excitable, a bit more loud, yes... But I think I am right in saying that I am sure you are of House Ylisse." Lissa sniffed, and punched his arm gently. "Y-you're sure?"  
Robin raised an eyebrow. "How could I not be? Even as much of an amnesiac as I am, I'm pretty sure I can tell who is related to who is not." He grinned at her. "Besides, for all you know, your Brand could just be taking long to surface. Maybe, ten years from now, it'll show up, and I can come to you and tell you that you were wrong after all."

For the first time that night, Lissa laughed. "Thanks, Robin. For making me feel better, and for being a good friend." Robin smiled, and nodded his head. "Not a problem, Lissa." Taking a look at the dining hall, he noticed that the festivities had quitened down. "Shall we... Do you want to go inside?" He asked Lissa. "Your brother will be missing you."

Shrugging, Lissa turned her head to the balustrade. "He's got Sumia. Hey, Robin!" That was more like Lissa, Robin thought, and was pleased. "Yes?"

"Let's go look at the rest of the Capital!" Lissa pointed eagerly out at the city from where they sat. Robin was taken aback. "What, now?" Lissa rolled her eyes, and got up. She pulled on his coatsleeve, and gestured at the city again. "Duh, when else? Come on, it'll only take, like, a minute!" She pleaded.

He was nonplussed. "How can touring the city take a minute?" Robin asked her, and Lissa rolled her eyes again before laughing exasperatedly. "I meant like, we look at the city, not we go down to the city." Robin saw what she meant now, and nodded determinedly. "Ah... Alright!" Lissa giggled as he stood up, saying, "Gods, Robin, you can be so obtuse!" Robin glanced at her. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

Lissa thought for a while, before grabbing his coat and pulling him to the edge of the balcony. She looked back at Robin, and grinned. "I think it's a good thing."

As the two leaned over the balustrade, Robin felt a sense of calm settle over them. The wind whipped his hair around, and blew Lissa's hair into his face. "Lissa, maybe we should, ah, move." Upon noticing Robin's discomfort, she agreed hastily, and the two swapped places. Robin hunched his shoulders down against the cold, and looked out over the city. It looked beautiful at this time of night, with the lights of every building sparkling so as to form a myriad of stars, almost exactly like the night sky. This image of the midnight sky appealed to Robin, and he smiled at something only he knew about. Namely, the beauty of the night.

"Robin?" The man in question looked over, and saw Lissa gazing at him curiously. "Are you okay?" He nodded, and replied happily, "Quite." Lissa nodded, and looked subdued. "Ah. Okay. Uh... Can I ask you to do something?"

Robin responded apprehensively, "Sure... I guess." He eyed her with slight distrust. "You're not going to prank me again, are you?" Lissa chuckled, then slugged his shoulder eith no force. "C'mon, you're still thinking about that? That was, like, ages ago!" Robin raised an eyebrow. "It was a few weeks ago, Lissa. I don't think that constitutes 'ages', per se."

"Can you just listen to me?" Lissa exclaimed, and admonished, Robin nodded weakly. She blushed, then nudged his shoulder. "Can you, er, hug me?"

Robin gaped at her, and she quickly backtracked. "I mean, it's cold! It's cold! I didn't bring a coat, and you've got that huge thing on, so I thought..." Lissa trailed off, and poked her two index fingers together. "You know what, forget I said anything." She took a step back. "Let's go inside-"

He took her arm. "Wait." Lissa was startled, and peered back at the tactician. "What?"

Puliing her towards him, Robin put both of his hands on her shoulders. "I'll hug you," he told her, and Lissa looked surprised for a second, before grinning. "You're slow, you know that, right?" she said, and still beaming enough to light up the dark balcony, or at least Robin thought, the two hugged each other.

They remained that way for a while, letting the sounds of the dinner inside wash over them. It seemed to be getting rowdier, thought Robin with distant alarm, but did not care. He looked down at Lissa, and she looked up at him. The height distance was quite large, Robin being almost a head taller. "Are you warm now?" he asked, and Lissa giggled. "Yeah."

Staring at each other, Robin began to lean closer, and Lissa as well. Their lips were less than a centimetre apart. Closer, closer.

Then they touched.

Later, Robin could have sworn that that moment lasted for an eternity, but when they pulled apart, Robin was dimly aware that it had lasted less than two seconds. His brain was all muddled up, but Robin knew that he would never forget that fleeting moment as long as he lived.

Robin stared at Lissa breathlessly, then looked at the door. The noise coming from the dining hall was overwhelming. "Let's go in," he muttered, and she laughed. This night consisted of an awful lot of laughing, Robin mused, before pushing out of his head and holding out a hand to Lissa. "Milady." Lissa mock-glared at him, before smiling broadly. "You do realise that Chrom might kill me, right?" Robin asked as Lissa took his hand, and she shrugged before glancing happily up at him. "Don't worry. We'll stop it, somehow."

Together, hands clasped, they strode in. "H-hey! Robin!" Shouted Vaike, and raised a tankard of ale. "Where... 've you been, hic!" The room didn't seem to notice, and to Robin's utter dismay, he saw that everyone in the room was completely and totally drunk.

Even Chrom was laid out flat, his head hanging over the edge of the chair he sat in. He was probably the one with the most dignified position, thought Robin with an inward groan, and surveyed the room with dread. Some Sheperds were on the floor; others face down on the table, and most were still going strong. "More ale!" Frederick thundered, and slammed the mug down. A servant ran in to refill the mug, and Frederick swiped it up before taking a huge gulp.

Robin held his head in his hands. "This is what happens when I leave them alone," he groaned, and Lissa patted his back sympathetically. "Some Sheperds! They can't even protect themselves from getting drunk!" Robin gestured wildly at the room. "I should never have left the party! Look at them! They're all smashed! Even the Exalt!"

Lissa shrugged optimistically. "But if you hadn't left the room, you never would've seen me, right?" Robin paused mid-exclamation, and lowered his hand. "R-right. You've... Got a point there."

She grabbed a tankard off the table with great enthusiasm, and passed it to Robin. "So lighten up, Robin!" Lissa told him cheerfully. "Enjoy the moment!"

Robin nodded thoughtfully, the raised his tankard in the air. "Cheers to the Exalt!" He shouted, and the room raised their tankards drunkenly and shouted with him. Robin glanced down at Lissa by his shoulder, and whispered, "And cheers to us."

A/N:

Hello! It's me again, back with another story! I've got a plan for this story, a real one. It should last, eh, five chapters? I've no real plan for regular updates, though, so I hope you can wait... I write as and when the inspiration strikes me, and that may not be often. So I hope you enjoy what I've written so far. Nearly 3000 words! I'm amazed at myself.

So about the story. I decided some sort of romance was in order. Yes, I do ship Male Robin and Lissa greatly. Don't get me wrong, though, I ship Lon'Qu and Lissa way more. But that will not get in my way of this! This will be a good story! I swear on my dinner! Ah, dinner... I wonder what's for dinner.

By the way, a note. I do use British English, so somethong that seems like a spelling error may not be a spelling error. It's grey, not gray.

Anywho, as always, feedback is much appreciated! Tell me where I went weird, and where I did not. Much thanks, and peace out!

Disclaimer: Nintendo owns everything. EVEN MY SOUL.


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